The Hindu Janajagruti Samiti (HJS) announced on Saturday that it will continue to protest against stand-up comedian Vir Das until he apologises for his “anti-India” comments made a year earlier while performing in the US, two days after his show in Bengaluru was deferred due to a ruckus by right wing organisations.
Ramesh Shinde, national spokesperson for HJS, stated that his organisation will continue to stage protests against Das regardless of where his show is held. “If we don’t protest against his statement, then it would mean that we support what he had said,” he was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
Shinde accused the comedian of defaming India at an international level, and said that if Das apologised, “the issue [would be] over,” the PTI report added.
After accusations of defaming India were made in relation to his monologue “I come from two Indias” last year, Das found himself at the centre of a significant controversy. The comedian who has been nominated for an Emmy is well known for criticising the government in his shows, which frequently gets him into trouble.
His Bengaluru performance was postponed at the last minute on Thursday, and Das explained the decision on Instagram by citing “unavoidable circumstances.” Later, he posted a video on Twitter in which he addressed concerns about the information in his shows.
“I’m an artist. I shouldn’t be on the news. Many assumptions are made about my content. I trust my art and my audience to speak for me. #TrustTheAudience,” he tweeted.
Shinde, however, claimed his outfit is not behind Das’ show getting deferred and that it had only filed a formal complaint against the comedian at a police station in Bengaluru. “Police informed us (HJS) that the show could not be canceled. So, we said we would protest outside the venue peacefully holding placards,” he said.
The HJS spokesperson said the decision to defer the show was taken by the organisers and the police.